[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 24684-24685]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



 ON S. 2950, SAND CREEK MASSACRE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE ESTABLISHMENT 
                              ACT OF 2000

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 23, 2000

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, as a cosponsor of the companion 
House legislation, I support the passage of this Senate measure so it 
can go to the President for signature into law.
  This bill is important for the country, and particularly for Colorado 
because it would authorize establishing a National Historic Site at the 
site of the Sand Creek Massacre--an event that for more than a century 
has been regarded as one of the most emotionally charged and 
controversial events in American history.
  On November 29, 1864, Col. John M. Chivington, leading about 700 
soldiers of the First and Third Colorado Volunteers, attacked a village 
of about 500 Cheyenne and Arapaho people. These people were under the 
overall leadership of Black Kettle, and had camped on Sand Creek at the 
direction of Major Scott Anthony, who commanded Fort Lyon, about 40 
miles to the south. By day's end, the soldiers had killed at least 150 
people, including women and children.
  The massacre resulted in almost instant controversy, which ultimately 
led to three federal investigations, all of which condemned 
Chivington's actions. By the 1865 Treaty of Little Arkansas with the 
Cheyenne and Arapaho, victims of Sand Creek received minor compensation 
for their suffering and loss of property. While some efforts were made 
to understand the massacre, place blame on the responsible parties, and 
compensate the tribes, little was actually done.
  Many people, including Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, visited the 
site and collected artifacts of all kinds. The land involved later was 
used for large-scale cattle operations, and eventually small private 
landowners farmed and grazed the property. As time passed, evidence of 
the massacre slowly disappeared. Although the event continued to be 
remembered, mostly by the tribes and historians, the only commemoration 
of the massacre was a simple granite marker placed near the site by the 
local community in 1950.
  In 1998, Public Law 105-243 authorized the Secretary of the Interior 
to identify the location and extent of the Sand Creek Massacre and to 
determine the suitability and feasibility of designating the site as a 
unit of the National Park System. Starting in 1998 a variety of 
techniques and methods were used to locate the site of the Sand Creek 
Massacre. These included a thorough research of written records, 
archaeology, geomorphology, aerial

[[Page 24685]]

photographic analysis, traditional tribal methods and recording the 
oral traditions of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, the 
Northern Cheyenne and the Northern Arapaho.
  Once the location of the site was identified, the next task was to 
determine national significance and suitability and reasonability of 
the site as a unit of the system. To be eligible for consideration, 
National Park Service management policies state that an area must 
possess nationally significant natural, cultural or recreational 
resources; be a suitable and feasible addition to the system; and 
require direct NPS management instead of protection by some other 
governmental agency or private sector. The Special Resource Study for 
the Sand Creek Massacre site, completed in July 2000, concluded that 
the area is nationally significant.
  I agree with that assessment. The Sand Creek Massacre site possesses 
exceptional value in illustrating and interpreting the history of U.S.-
Indian relations in the American West. The massacre of nearly 150 
Cheyenne and Arapaho people who believed they were under the protection 
of the U.S. Government was a major turning point in the relationship 
between whites and Indians. Virtually all Indian and army conflicts 
that ensued were rooted, at least partly, in the massacre.
  Thus, a National Park System unit at Sand Creek would provide an 
opportunity for Americans to better understand the significance of the 
massacre, the chain of events that led to it, the relationship between 
Indians and whites during the mid-to late-19th Century, the devastating 
effects of the massacre upon the Cheyenne and Arapaho peoples, and its 
far reaching repercussions, many of which linger today. The site also 
retains a high degree of physical integrity, and its isolated setting 
will give visitors an opportunity to contemplate the complexities of 
the human tragedy that unfolded there.
  The Interior Department's Special Resource Study also concluded that 
Sand Creek is both suitable and feasible as a unit of the National Park 
System--suitable because it represents a cultural theme that is not 
already adequately represented in the system, and feasible because the 
area taken as a whole is of sufficient size and configuration to ensure 
long-term resource protection and accommodate public use.
  S. 2950 would authorize the establishment of Sand Creek National 
Historic Site. The unit would be established once the Secretary of the 
Interior determines that sufficient lands have been acquired to provide 
for the protection and commemoration of the Sand Creek Massacre. Lands 
are identified on a map dated July 1, 2000 and would be acquired 
through donation, purchase from willing sellers or exchange. Priority 
for acquisition is given to the site containing the historical member. 
Keys to managing the site would be protection of the natural and 
cultural features that and critical to telling the story of Sand Creek; 
and cooperation and consultation with the tribes in the development of 
management plans and educational programs.
  Mr. Speaker, let me conclude by commending the senior Senator from 
Colorado, Senator Campbell, for introducing this bill and for all he 
has done to make it possible for this bill to be before the House 
today. I urge its passage.

                          ____________________